What is the Pentas plant? How does it look?
Pentas plant is both perennial and annual flowering plant from the Rubiaceae family. It is native to tropical and southern Africa i.e. hot climates like Comoros, Madagascar, and Arabian Peninsula. Pentas flower blooms in a cluster. These flowers come in many shades of pink, red, purple, and also white. If you have pentas lanceolata in your house, then a lot of butterflies and hummingbirds will be your visitors. These little flowers are very attractive, especially to these hummingbirds and butterflies.
Some species like Pentas lanceolata can bear full and direct sunlight. This species also requires very little to no care. It can also grow in hot and dry areas. Whereas, some species are grown by many people at home in pots and baskets.
Pentas plant overview
Scientific name – Pentas lanceolata
Kingdom – Plantae
Popular names – Pentas, Egyptian Star Cluster
Plant type – Perennial Flowering plant
Flower colours – Red, pink, purple, and white
Sun requirement – Bright full sun
Water requirement – Very less
Soil conditions – Well drained acidic soil
Soil pH –7
Zone-9-11
How to grow pentas flowers from seeds?
Pentas plants are very easy to propagate. If you are a beginner gardener, you can try these beautiful plants. To grow pentas from seeds follow the steps that we will mention below.
Step 1: Prepare a bed for these delicate flowers with lots of fertilizers. These plants grow well in acidic soil.
Step 2: Water the plant directly after sowing it to the soil.
Step 3: Keep it in partial sun. Once the saplings start to come out, put it in the area where it will receive morning sun. If not, then you can also put it under direct sun for about 4-5 hours in hot summers and the whole day in winters.
Step 5: When the saplings are hard enough then transplant them to a new well-drained pot.
How to grow pentas from the stem?
Take the stem of pentas plant and damp the stem into soilless grounds. Remember to do this process in the spring season. Spring is the time when all the beautiful flowers bloom to their fullest.
All you have to do is prepare well-drained soil with a slightly acidic medium. To make your soil acidic you can use lemons.
After you plant your pentas. water it thoroughly and put it under the sun for proper nourishment and food.
Pentas plant Care
To make your pentas plant look good and bushy, make sure to prune it. The right time to prune your pentas plant is after summers, during the rainy season due to heavy rain, and at the onset of winters.
Pruning is also very important for the healthy growth of this beautiful plant. It will give this plant a controlled and compact look. This will make pentas plant appear bushy.
Type of soil needed
Pentas flower plants need a lot of compost in their soil. This plant likes acidic soil. The composition of soil for this particular plant is 40% organic compost, 40% sand, and 20% garden soil.
Well-drained soil is a must for all the plant except for the plants that like wet soil. It goes without saying, if the roots are surrounded by too much water it will die.
A lot of watering will lead to rotten roots which is the case with most of the plants.
Environment required
Pentas plants are annual plants. These plants bloom in all the seasons but it looks even more beautiful in the rainy season. 3-4 hours of the hot summer sun with partial shade is ideal for this plant. Whereas, in winters full day direct sun with moderate watering will be ideal.
Water Required
If you have kept your Egyptian Star Cluster plant under direct sun, then you can water it regularly. If you are growing it in cold weather, then water it less frequently.
Special care is required in the rainy season as it might rot due to heavy rain. If you are living in an area where it rains continuously for several days, then you must keep your pentas under shade.
Caution with Pentas plants
- Too much acidic soil can bring damage to this plant.
- Saturated soil can lead to rotten roots.
- Fungal disease in pentas can destroy the roots.
- Aphids and spider mites are the pests that bother this plant. These pests are sap-sucking insects.
- Since this plant is a delight to butterflies, caterpillars can feed on their leaves.
- Freezing weather can kill this plant as this is a sun-loving plant.
We hope this information will be useful for you and will help you grow pentas in a healthy way. To know more about other plants and their details click here.
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